Strange New Faces
by Charlee B
Summary: Lily becomes jealous of Hannah's new friendship with teen superstar Meghan Hollaway. Meanwhile, Miley tries to figure out the strange feeling of familiarity with the new girl in school. Lackson & a teeny tiny bit Niley, OliverOC
1. Chapter 1

_Heyy everybody! This is my very first Hannah Montana fanfic. I'm real excited about this, so please be gentle in your reviews (but don't forget to review!). _

_**Strange New Faces**_

_**Summary:**__ Lily becomes jealous of Hannah's new friendship with teen superstar Meghan Hollaway. Meanwhile, Miley tries to figure out the strange feeling of familiarity with the new girl in school. (might turn out to be Jiley & Lackson, not sure. Probably in the sequel)_

Chapter One

"Hannah Montana! You're on in five minutes!" yelled the stagehand.

"Oh my god!" Lily Truscott exclaimed. "This is so cool! Did you see who just went to buy a pretzel? Justin Timberlake! Justin Timberlake is a pretzel-eater! Just like me! We could be soulmates!"

"Calm down, Lola," Hannah said. Miley Stewart wasn't surprised. Lily always got like this around celebrities. But that was part of Lily's charm. She was her best friend, after all.

"Where did Oliver go?" Hannah asked.

"He followed Hilary Duff to the snack bar a while ago," Lily said. "He said he was going to get 'her digits', as he put it."

"That boy does not know when to quit, does he?" Miley said. She and Lily laughed.

"Hey HM!" somebody yelled from behind them. They turned around to see a tall, dark-haired girl with purple highlights walking towards them.

"Hey MH!" Hannah replied, giving the girl a hug.

"HM?MH?" Lola said, confused.

"Oh, it's just a little thing that we do," the girl said, who Lily recognized as teen pop star Meghan Hollaway. "It's just the first letter of my first name and my last name are the same as Hannah's..."

"But reversed!" Hannah said, as the two girls laughed. Lily crossed her arms over her chest, looking annoyed. "Oh, Meghan, this is my best friend Lola Luftnagle. Lola, this is Meghan Hollaway."

"Nice to finally meet you," Meghan said, extending her hand. Lola did not move.

"Right!" Miley said, breaking the tension. "I'm so excited about our duet, Meghan!"

"Yeah, me too!" Meghan replied. "Singing 'You And Me Together' for this charity concert was a great idea!"

"It's okay Hil!" Oliver Oaken's voice suddenly said, as he walked towards where the 3 girls were standing. "I'll holler at you later!"

"How did it go with Hilary, Ol--I mean Mike?" Lily said, trying to get away from Hannah and Meghan's conversation.

"Swing and a miss," he replied. "It's cool though. She's just playing hard to get."

"I'm sure she is," Lily said sarcastically.

"Whoa!" Oliver exclaimed, looking over Lola's shoulder to where Hannah and Meghan were chatting. "Is that Meghan Hollaway? She is much hotter in person! Excuse me, Lola, I think Hannah needs to introduce us."

He walked over to where the girls were, Lily following behind. "Hannah!" Oliver said. "Why haven't you introduced me to your gorgeous little friend?"

"Um, right," Hannah said awkwardly. "Meghan, this is---"

"Mike Stanley III, at your service," Oliver said, peering over the top of his sunglasses and winking at Meghan.

"Sure," Meghan replied, sounding unimpressed. "Nice to meet you."

"No," Oliver said, smiling and winking again. "The pleasure's all mine."

"Hannah! Meghan! You guys are on in 20...19...18...17..." the stagehand yelled.

"Well we got to go," Hannah said.

"I'll see you girls later then," Oliver said, looking at Meghan.

"Right," Meghan said, pulling Hannah towards the stage.

"Bye!" Hannah yelled, waving at Lily and Oliver.

_"Put your hands together for two sensational popstars as well as good friends, singing a duet of the smash hit 'You And Me Together', Hannah Montana and Meghan Hollaway!"_

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"Did you guys have fun last night?" Miley asked her two best friends the following day at school.

"Yeah," Lily said with a hint of sarcasm. "Listening to you and 'MH' talk about all the wonderful things you've done together for hours on end was a blast." She gave Miley a sarcastic thumbs-up.

"Come on," Miley said. "We totally included you in our conversations. Sometimes we had little inside jokes. Meghan's great. Give her a chance."

"Well,"Oliver said proudly. "I thought she was cool. Did she say anything about me?"

"Yeah," Miley said. "She said she couldn't tell what kind of person you were because you kept hitting on her every two seconds."

"Oh," Oliver said awkwardly. "Ouch."

"Okay people, settle down," Mr Corelli said. "The principal will be here shortly with our new student, who will be joining our class for a couple of weeks."

"Why is he only here for a couple of weeks?" Lily asked.

"_She _will only be here for about 6 weeks because her parents just got divorced," Mr Corelli said. "And she's staying with her dad for awhile before she goes to live with her mom back in New York. So be nice to the new girl, okay, my little minions?"

"Mr Corelli," the principal said, entering the classroom. Beside him was a tall girl with shoulder lenghth ginger hair and glasses. "This is Peyton Carter. She will be joining this class as of today."

"Oh my god," Miley heard Amber whisper to Ashley. "Look at her hair!"

"Can you say Carrot Head?" they both said in unison. "Oooooh, tisss!" Miley rolled her eyes as Amber and Ashley continued to quietly make fun of Peyton. Why did they have to be so judgemental? So maybe this Peyton Carter girl had really bright hair. Her outfit was really cute, though. It actually looked very familiar to Miley. Where had she seen it before?

"Thanks, Mr Anderson," Mr Corelli said. "Peyton, why don't sit in that empty place there, next to Miley?"

"Hey," Miley said as Peyton sat down. "I'm Miley Stewart. These are my friends Lily Truscott and Oliver Oaken."

"Hey," Peyton said. "Nice to meet you."

"So you like California?" Lily asked. "Mr Corelli said you're from New York."

"Yeah," Peyton replied. "It's definetly nice. But it's quite a change. It's like I'm in a whole different world, you know? It's like I can be a totally new person."

"Yeah," Miley said, nodding. "I remember when I moved here from Tenessee. Some people weren't all that nice." She looked over to where Amber and Ashley pointing at Peyton and giggling.

"Well," Peyton said, shrugging. "You guys seem nice. And that works for me!"

Miley smiled. It felt nice that she could help Peyton ajust to this new place for her. She remembered how scared she was when she moved to Malibu a couple of years ago. But she couldn't shake the feeling like she had met Peyton before. Something about her seemed to familiar. She just couldn't put her finger on it.


	2. Chapter 2

_Heyy guys! I've changed up some of my original plans for this story, so let me know what you think! Also, feel free to give any suggestions or ideas you have for the story. So here we go!_

Chapter Two

(Lilly's POV)

Lily skateboarded down the boardwalk towards Miley's house. She was so happy that they were going to spend the day together. It had been so long since they just hung out. Ever since Hannah became friends with that...girl, Lily had barely spent any time with Miley. They were supposed to be best friends, right?

Lilly rang the Stewarts' doorbell. Jackson opened the door. "Hey Lilly," he said. "Come on in."

"Hey," Lilly replied, stepping off her skateboard and walking into the Stewarts' living room. "Is Miley ready yet?"

"No, sorry," Jackson said. "She's out with that singer girl. What's her name...? Meghan..."

"Hollaway," Lilly said in a mocking tone. Jackson laughed. "I can see you're her number one fan."

"Yeah," Lilly said sarcastically. "I love her. I don't mind that she's spending ever second of every day with my best friend."

"Oh come on," Jackson said. "It's not that bad. You and Miley have been best friends forever. You're the first person she told her secret to. You guys have been through so much together. This Meghan Hollaway character isn't gonna change that."

"Wow, Jackson," Lilly said, surprised. "That was really...deep."

"Well," Jackson said, grinning and flipping up his collar. "I have my moments."

Suddenly, Lilly's phone rang. "It's Miley," Lilly said, looking at the display screen.

"See," Jackson said. "I bet she's calling to say she's so sorry for being such a lousy friend the last week, and she's gonna make it up to you by taking you to a fabulous Hollywood party, without Meghan Hack-away."

Lilly smiled and flipped open her phone. "Hello?" Lilly said.

"Hey Lola!" Miley said.

"Hey," Lilly said.

"I know we haven't spend a lot of time together lately," Miley said apologetically.

"Yeah," Lilly said, smiling and giving Jackson a thumbs-up.

"I've been so busy with concerts and stuff," Miley said. "So...I was wondering if you wanted to meet us at Chris Brown's party!"

The smile disappeared from Lily's face. "Us?"

"Me and Meg!" Hannah replied. "We're just wrapping up this interview with _Teen Scene Magazine. _And guess what? They want us to be on the cover together next month!"

"Wow," Lilly said, through gritted teeth. "Sounds super fun."

"Yeah," Hannah said, laughing. "So you coming?"

"Coming? Where?" Lilly asked, confused.

"To Chris Brown's party!"

"Umm," Lilly said, looking over at Jackson. She suddenly got an idea. "Sorry. Can't."

"What?" Miley said, surprised. "Why not?"

"I've already got plans," Lilly said, smiling.

"Really?" Miley said. "With who?"

"Jackson," Lilly said triumphantly. Jackson looked around at Lilly, surprised.

"Boyfriendless-best-friend-say-what?" Miley said.

"Yeah," Lilly said. "Since you weren't home, me and Jackson decided to go to the beach and hang out."

"Well," Miley said, jealous. "Maybe I'll stop by after the party."

"I guess we'll see you there," Lilly said. "What's that Jackson? I'm coming! Sorry, Miles, I gotta go! Bye!" She flipped her phone closed.

"Okay," Jackson said, nodding his head. " I see what you're doing. You're using me to make Miley jealous, aren't you? You know that she would hate it if she thought we were friends, so you told her we were going to the beach so she would come too."

"Yup," Lilly said, grinning. "So come on!'

"Where are we going?" Jackson asked.

"To the beach!"

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"No way!" Lilly said, laughing.

"Yes way," Jackson, also laughing.

"I cannot believe you used to do ballet!" Lilly said, whipping the tears of laughter from her eyes.

"It was Mom's idea," Jackson said. "My dad got so freaked out when he found out, he sent me to gladiator camp."

"Wow," Lilly said. She and Jackson and spent the last two hours at the beach. They had surfed, ate some hot dogs and talked.

"Hey Lilly!" a voice said from behind them. They both turned around to see Peyton Carter, Lilly's new classmate, waving and walking towards them. She took a seat next to them at Rico's.

"Hey Peyton," Lilly said. "How's it going?"

"Not bad," Peyton replied, pushing her sunglasses up on her nose. "Just trying to relax. It's been a crazy week."

"You like it here so far?" Lilly asked.

"It's been great so far," Peyton said, nodding. "Everybody's been really nice. Well, almost everybody..." She nodded towards the far end of the beach, where Amber and Ashley were working on their tans.

"You'll learn to block them out," Lilly said. Peyton laughed. "Well," Peyton said. "I think I'll go. I don't want to interrupt your date." She looked over at Jackson.

"Wha...?" Lilly said awkwardly. "Date...?"

"No, no," Jackson said, blushing. "Definitely not."

"He's not...," Lilly said. "We're not...he's Miley's brother."

"We're not even friends," Jackson said quickly.

"We're not?" Lilly said, looking slightly hurt.

"Well...," Jackson said, scratching the back of his head. "I never really thought about it before...Are we?"

"I don't know," Lilly replied. She turned to Peyton. "Well, whatever we are, this is definitely not a date. Please stay."

"Okay then," Peyton said. Then, Oliver came over and sat next to Jackson. "Hey guys," he said. "Where's Miley?"

"Out with her new friend," Lilly said, rolling her eyes.

"Are you waiting for her?" Oliver asked.

"No," Lilly replied. 'I'm here with Jackson."

"Really?" Oliver asked. "That's...interesting. That's like crossing a tuna-fish at a sushi bar!"

Oliver paused, waiting for laughter. They were all surprised to suddenly hear Peyton laugh. "Good one," she said smiling, and flipping back her hair.

Lilly leaned in towards Jackson. "Did she just laugh at one of Oliver's attempts at a joke?" Lilly whispered.

"People don't laugh at Oliver's jokes," Jackson whispered back. "Usually 'cause they're not funny."

"Man, I'm starved," Peyton said. "Hey waiter, can I have a pretzel, two hot dogs with mustard, relish, ketchup, olives, nacho cheese and two pickles? Oh, and a root beer."

They all gaped at Peyton. "What?" she said.

"Nothing," Oliver said, smiling and trying to hide how impressed he was. "Nothing at all."


	3. Chapter 3

_Heyy fellow FanFictioneers! Here's chapter three of "Strange New Faces". Enjoy! Don't forget to REVIEW, cause reviews feed the creative soul!_

Chapter Three

"She laughed?" Hannah said, her eyes bulging in surprise.

"Uh huh," Lola said, nodding.

"But he's never funny!" Hannah said, smiling.

"I know!" Lola said, laughing.

"Girls only laugh at him 'cause he nods like chicken and falls over stuff!" Hannah said.

"I know!" Lilly repeated. "Peyton actually laughed at something Oliver said. We were all in shock. Even Oliver!"

"You think they could get together?" Miley said hopefully.

"I don't know," Lilly replied. "She's only here for another month or so. Plus, he seems pretty hung up on..."

"Hey girls!" Meghan suddenly said, coming up behind the pair. "You having fun?"

"Yeah!" Hannah replied. "Your party is great!"

"Well," Meghan said modestly. "You all know who's party this really is." She looked over to where a tall slender woman with dark hair was schmoozing some movie producers. "Yeah," Hannah said. "Your mom seems...really...a very good hostess."

"Meghan! Meghan!" Meghan's mother said, waving at the girls and walking over, her very expensive designer shoes clacking on the tile floor of the lounge. "Why aren't you wearing that charming little pink number I bought for you this morning? And what did I tell you about your hair?"

"Why thank you, Mother," Meghan said sarcastically. "You look fabulous yourself."

"Anyway," her mother said, looking over at Hannah. "It's so nice that you could come, Hannah! You look ravishing!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Hollaway," Hannah said, smiling awkwardly.

"Oh, darling, it's _Ms_ Birwith now. The divorce was finalized yesterday. Oh, and please, call me Madeleine."

"Oh," Hannah said, blushing. Lola coughed loudly. "Uh, Madeleine, this is my best friend Lola Lufn---"

"Charmed," Ms Holloway said, half-listening. "Oh! Steven! Mr Spielberg! So glad you could come to my little get-together! I heard your looking for a young new female lead! My daughter would be perrr-fect! Let's talk!" She quickly walked away, waving in the direction of a man in a suit.

"Wow," Lola said. "She's...lovely."

"Sorry about that," Meghan said, embarrassed. "She can be a little...intense sometimes. I don't know which is crazier, her as my mom or her as my manager. Oh, hey, Lola, by the way, I love your shoes."

"Um," Lola said, crossing her arms over her chest and looking away. "Yeah. Thanks."

"Hey Lola," Meghan said. "I was wondering if you wanted to come to this movie premiere with me and Hannah on Saturday."

"Oh," Lola said nervously. "Um...sorry, can't. I have a...prior engagement."

"With Jackson?" Hannah asked.

"Yeah...," Lilly said. "Uh..._Night of the Living Bridezillas _is playing at the drive-thru...so we thought we would go. I would have asked you, but I knew you were already going to that premiere, so...Well, actually, I, uh, have to call Jackson and remind him, to...uh, get gas. " She flipped open her cell phone and dialed Jackson's number.

"Who's Jackson?" Meghan asked Lola. "Your boyfriend?"

"NO!" Hannah said. "Um, no, definitely not. He's just her...friend. Right, Lola?"

Lola shrugged. "Sure," Lola replied. "Hello? Jackson? It's Lil--uh, Lola."

"Hi Lilly," Jackson said on the other end. "What's up?"

"I just called," Lilly said, looking over at Miley, who was glaring at the phone. "To, um, remind you to put gas in your car before Saturday. Before, um, you know, we go to see _Night of the Living Bridezillas _at the drive-thru. Like we, um, decided the other day."

"You need an excuse to not go to some thing with Hannah and Meghan, and your asking me to make her jealous, aren't you? And they're both standing right there, aren't they?" Jackson asked.

"Yes," Lilly replied, still staring at Miley.

"My shift at Rico's is over at seven," Jackson said. "See you then?"

"Of course," Lilly replied. "Bye!" She snapped her phone shut. Miley glared jealously at her. Before she could say anything, Oliver suddenly appeared next to them, dressed in his signature 'Mike Stanley III' attire, with a plate and a mouth full of food.

"Dang!" Oliver said. "This chili dip is freaky-freaky-fresh!"

"Where did you find that?" Meghan asked, putting her hands on her hips.

"Uhh," Oliver said, stuffing the last of his chili-dip-laced crackers in his mouth. "The fridge in the garage. It was in a container marked 'Anchovies and Avocado Salad'."

"Oh, that's my secret stash," Meghan said, grinning. "It's my dad's recipe, and my mom always hated it. Now since the divorce, she won't let it in the house. The two things she can't most, besides my father, are anchovies and avocados. So I figured it was a safe call till I get the mini-fridge installed in my room."

"It's awesome," Mike said.

"Thanks," Meghan said. "I made that batch myself."

"Well," Oliver said. "You're going to need to make a new batch after tonight."

Hannah and Lola rolled their eyes. "She sings, she dances," Oliver said, looking at Meghan. "And she cooks. Where have you been all my life, babe?"

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't call me 'babe'," Meghan said to Mike. "Or 'toots', or 'sweet thang' or 'sugar'. I'm a girl, not a piece of meat."

"Oh," Oliver said, blushing. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."

"It's fine," Meghan said, smiling.

"Oh darling!" said Ms Hollaway from across the room. "Where are you? There's someone I want you to meet!"

"I'm gonna go hide in the laundry room," Meghan said, scurrying away. "If she asks, you don't know where I am!"

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"Okay, class," Ms Kunkle said the next afternoon in biology class. "Take your seats. I said, TAKE YOUR SEATS!"

The class quickly sat down at their respective desks. "Good," Ms Kunkle said. "Now, we are going to be doing a project this month. You and a classmate will choose a living organism, and describe it in a six-page essay, including all the things we have learned this year. You will be allowed to choose your partner, but I am giving only two minutes to do so. If you don't have a partner by the time the two minutes, you will be doing it ALONE! Go!"

"Partners?" Lilly and Miley said to each other.

"Hey!" Oliver said. "How is it that every time we have a group project, I always get excluded?"

"Come on, Oliver," Miley said. "You know we love you. It's not like you're gonna end up alone?"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Lilly said.

"You can be with Peyton!" Miley said enthusiastically. "Peyton!" Peyton quickly turned around. "Yeah?" she said.

"You wanna be with Oliver for the project?" Miley asked.

"Sure!" Peyton replied, smiling.

"Cool," Oliver said, smiling back.

The bell rang, and the class was let out for lunch. "Oh my gosh," Miley whispered to Lilly as the class shuffled into the cafeteria. "This is perfect! They're together for the project!"

"I thought we weren't meddling in his life anymore," Lilly said. "Do you not remember the Becca Weller Incident?"

"Yeah," Miley said. "I guess. But it can't hurt to nudge them in the right direction."

"OK then," Lilly said, sighing.

They found Peyton and Oliver and the four of them got a stray of food each and sat down at a table. They ate their food, occasionally making small talk, until Miley got an idea and stood up.

"Well," Miley said, grinning. "Me and Lilly are going to the library, to get some books...for our bio project."

"We are?" Lilly said, looking up at Miley with a confused look on her face. Miley shot her a look. "Right," Lilly said, quickly getting up. "We are."

"You guys just hang out together here," Miley said, still grinning. "We'll be back soon. Bye!"

"Uh, guys?" Oliver said, getting up. "Can I have a quick word with you, over here?"

"What's up, Oliver?" Miley asked, as the three moved over, out of earshot of Peyton.

"You think I don't know what you're doing?" Oliver said.

"Whatever do you mean?" Miley shrugged.

"You're trying to set me up with Peyton!" Oliver said.

"Uh oh," Lilly said.

"Are we going to have a repeat of the Becca Weller Incident?" Oliver asked.

"Why does everyone keep bringing that up?" Miley said loudly, raising her arms in the air. "And what's wrong with Peyton, anyway?"

"Nothing," Oliver said. "She's cool, but I don't like her that way. Plus, I'm about to crack it with Meghan."

"Oh sweet niblets," Miley said, rolling her eyes. "Would you just let your Meghan obsession go? She's not interested in 'Mike Stanley the Third'."

"Give it time," Oliver said.

"Whatever," Miley said. "Just go sit with Peyton anyway. Bye!" She walked away, pulling Lilly with her.

"Where are you going?" Oliver yelled after them.

"To the library!" Miley yelled back. "Now go!"

Oliver rolled his eyes and sat back down next to Peyton.

"Are the always that subtle?" Peyton said, smiling sarcastically.

"Wha...what do you mean?' Oliver asked.

"They're trying to set us up," Peyton said blankly.

"Oh," Oliver said, smiling sheepishly. "Yeah, they are. That happens a lot when your two best friends are girls."

"Well," Peyton said. "It's okay. At least they're just your friends, so you can ignore them. Not like my mom."

"What do you mean?" Oliver said.

"My mom has this idea that I can only go out with certain types of guys," Peyton said. "And even be friends with only certain types of people. That's probably why I don't have any real friends. I mean, how can you be friends with someone if you don't even know if they like you for you?"

"Yeah," Oliver said. "But at least now you've got friends." He smiled.

"Thanks," Peyton said, blushing.

"So I guess you'd rather live here with your dad?" Oliver said.

"Yeah," Peyton said. "But I can't tell my mom that. She'd totally wig out. She wants me to stay with her.I love her so much, but I feel like she's trying to make me into everything she always wanted to be but never could."

"Well," Oliver said. "I think you should stay here. It's been fun hanging out with you this past week."

"It's been great hanging with you guys," Peyton said, smiling. "You're really great."


	4. Chapter 4

_Heyy guys and gals! I'd like to quickly thank all of you that have written reviews, favourited my story and put it on story alert. So, thanks! Keep it up! Just a quick somethin somethin: 'Life After You' is not actually sung by Meghan Hollaway, but by the awesome Brie Larson. So I do not own it. Nor anything affiliated to Hannah Montana, which is a trademark of Walt Disney...blah blah blah...NOW ON WITH THE SHOW!_

_Peace & Love,_

_Charlee B. 3_

_PS Don't forget to REVIEW!_

Chapter Four

"Dad!" Miley yelled, coming down the stairs. "Where my dress that I bought at that place that goes with those shoes that I bought that one time when we in that town for that show?"

"What in Uncle Earl's tractor are you talkin' about, bud?" Robbie Ray said, as Miley reached the kitchen, wearing her Hannah wig and a bathrobe.

"The dress," Miley said slowly. "That I bought at that place that goes with those shoes that I bought that one time when we in that town for that show. Where is it?"

"I didn't have a clue what you were talkin' about the first time," Robbie Ray said, opening the fridge and taking out a piece of pie. "I don't have anymore of a clue this time 'round. You know the only person who understands you when you talk like that is Lilly."

"Well," Miley said, sighing, taking a fork and helping herself to her dad's piece of lemon meringue pie. "Lilly's unavailable at the moment. She's at the movies with _Jackson_. I mean, what does she see in him? Why would she rather go to the movies with him than---"

"Go to a movie premiere with you and your new friend?" Robbie Ray finished. "Your friend who happens to be famous, just like Hannah, and unlike Lilly?"

"What?" Miley said, stabbing at the pie. "That's ridiculous. Lilly's my best friend. She doesn't have a problem with me being friends with Meghan."

"Just like you don't have a problem with her being friends with Jackson?" Robbie Ray said, taking a forkful of lemon meringue. 

"Sweet nibblets," Miley said, violently stabbing the pie. "I hate it when you're right." She grabbed the plate and stormed back upstairs.

"Hey!" Robbie Ray exclaimed. "Where do you think you're going with my pie!"

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"Ready to go?" Jackson said, coming around to the front of Rico's to greet Lilly.

"Yup," Lilly replied. They walked in silence to Jackson's car and got in. Neither said a word. Why had things become so awkward all of a sudden? Lilly couldn't figure it out. She had never really talked all that much with Jackson. But ever since they started hanging out, ever since Miley had started hanging with _her_, she had gotten to know Jackson pretty well. And oddly enough, she liked the person he was. But not _like_ like. _Of course not! _Lilly quickly thought. _That would be so crazy!_

"So...," Lilly said, rubbing her hands together. 

"Let's see what's on the radio," Jackson said, turning the dial. 

"Good idea," Lilly said. 

_" 'Hey, didn't need you anyway  
I'm getting better every day  
Don't you think it's funny how it all works out  
Yeah, I've finally got a life  
I go on every night  
Now I've got so much to say, so much to do  
This is life, life after you _

This is life, life after you...'

_That was Meghan Hollaway's smash hit 'Life After You' here on 93.7HHN FM Radio. Meghan will be attending the LA premiere of 'A Day Like No Other' tonight, with fellow teen superstar Hannah Montana. On 'The Real Deal with Collin Lassiter' last night, Meghan said that Hannah is like the sister she never---"_

"Silence is good too," Jackson said, quickly shutting of the radio. "Just listening to the wind and the air and stuff..."

"It's fine," Lilly said. "It doesn't matter."

"It's just...," Jackson said awkwardly.

"You know what's really screwed up?" Lilly said. "That song is awesome. All of her songs are. And not only that, she's always trying to be nice to me."

"I guess it's hard hating someone who's so nice, eh?" Jackson asked.

"Yeah," Lilly said. 

"Well then maybe you should give her a chance," Jackson said.

"I don't know," Lilly said. "It's just I feel like she's been stealing Miley away from me, you know? It's like the only time we hang out is at school."

"Well," Jackson said. "She's not really Miley's friend, is she? She's Hannah's friend."

"Good point," Lilly said. "This is so weird."

"What is so weird?" Jackson said.

"You were always Jackson, Miley's annoying older brother," Lilly said. "But turns out your pretty fun to hang out with."

"So I guess you could say something good came out of Meghan & Hannah becoming friends," Jackson said, smiling. 

"Oh yeah?" Lilly said.

"If they had never become friends," Jackson explained. "Then you never would have used me to make Miley jealous, and we never would have become friends."

"Yeah," Lilly said. "I'm glad they did."

"Me too."

---------------------------------------------------------------------

"_Hey! You've reached Lilly! Leave one at the beep!_" 

"Dang flabbit!" Hannah said, shutting her phone angrily. She had been trying to reach Lilly for the last 20 minutes, but with no success. She must have still been out with Jackson. Miley needed to talk to her, to apologize for how she had been acting. How could she have not seen how she had treated her best friend? How had she not seen that Lilly was feeling left out when Hannah was with Meghan? She was hanging out with Jackson, for crying out loud! That should have been enough to see that something was up.

"You alright, Hannah?" Meghan asked, coming up behind Miley.

"Yeah," Hannah said, putting her phone back in her purse. "I've just been trying to reach Lil---Lola."

"Did something happen between you two?" Meghan asked, sounding concerned. "I hope I'm not the cause. I've been having this feeling like she doesn't like me very much."

"No," Hannah replied. "It's not your fault. I've just been really caught up in all this, and I owe Lola an apology."

"Well," Meghan said. "I'm sure she's probably still out with that Jackson guy. So just enjoy yourself before the movie starts."

"Yeah," Hannah said, looking up. "Maybe I should follow somebody's lead." She nodded over to Oliver, who was trying to chat up the Sarah Truman, the star of _A Day Like No Other_. She looked unamused and unimpressed and quickly walked away. Oliver turned around and walked over to Hannah and Meghan.

"Just had a chat with Sarah Truman," Oliver said. "Nice girl."

Hannah and Meghan rolled their eyes. "I'm gonna try Lola again, okay?" Hannah said to Meghan.

"Sure," Meghan said, nodding. Hannah walked over to the side and dug her phone out if her purse.

"So," Oliver said, grinning. "I guess it's just you and me now."

"I guess so," Meghan said, smiling awkwardly. 

"Has anybody ever told you your eyes are like violets?" Oliver said.

"Look," Meghan said seriously. "You seem like a really nice guy. Wait, scrap that. You seem like a pompous ladies man. I'm just not interested, okay? You're not my type. Plus, I kinda like somebody else. Sorry."

"Oh,"Oliver said, looking defeated. "I understand. Just so you know, I'm not usually like this. I was just trying to impress you. I guess it didn't work."

"It's alright," Meghan said. "If you promise to stop hitting on me every 5 seconds, maybe we can be friends?"

"Yeah," Oliver said, nodding. "I'll settle for friends."

"So friends it is," Meghan said, smiling. She put out her hand. Oliver took it and gave a firm shake.

"So this guy you like," Oliver said. "Do I know him?"

"You mean have you read about him in a magazine?" Meghan said, laughing. "No. He's just a regular guy."

"Well then," Oliver said. "He's one lucky regular guy, if a great girl like you, who happens who be a super teen pop star, likes him. And that wasn't me flirting. I promise."

Meghan smiled. "Yeah."


	5. Chapter 5

_REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW, please!! Every review brings a smile to my face, so the more reviews I get, the happier I'll be. And a happy me means more chapters updated more frequently!_

Chapter Five

"Lilly!" Miley said loudly, jogging to catch up to her friend in the crowded school hall. "Lilly!"

"Hey Miley," Lilly said as Miley caught up to her.

"Where were you all weekend?" Miley asked. "I've been trying to call you since Saturday night!"

"Oh, sorry," Lilly said apologetically. "My mom took me on this weird 'women's retreat' thing yesterday and refused to let me bring my phone. She said I couldn't reach my full level of 'womanly potential' while I was still connected to the world 'which is dominated and controlled by men'. She's been really into the feminist stuff lately."

"Oh, wow," Miley said. "Sounds like...fun."

"Not really," Lilly said, laughing. "What is it you wanted to tell me?"

"Oh yeah," Miley said, getting back on subject. "I just wanted to apologize for how I've been acting lately."

"What do you mean?" Lilly said, trying to sound clueless.

"You know," Miley said, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Hannah's new friendship with Meghan. I've been totally been letting you slide. I'm so sorry."

"It's fine," Lilly said.

"No it's not," Miley retorted.

"Really, it is," Lilly said. "I mean, at first I was really jealous. That's why I started hanging out with Jackson. I figured if you saw that I was hanging out with your obnoxious brother more than you--"

"I'd get totally jealous, just like you were!" Miley said, with a sigh of relief. "And it worked! I'm so glad you were only hanging out to make me jealous! I thought you actually liked him!'

"Yeah," Lilly said awkwardly, looking at the floor. "Well, anyways, after I realized that it was fine that Hannah had a new friend, 'cause Miley is always going to be my best friend."

"Awww," Miley said. "Hugs?"

The girls hugged. "And I'm sorry for trying to make you friends with Meghan. It's okay if you don't like her."

"Yeah," Lilly said as the two girls pulled apart. "Maybe we just don't have that much in common."

"Come on," Miley said, smiling. "Let's go to Biology." They girls pushed through the crowd and made their way to the biology classroom. They saw that Peyton and Oliver were already seated, in the midst of a heated discussion.

"I cannot believe you think Superman is better than Spiderman," Oliver said in disbelief. "Spiderman can climb walls, AND his costume is much better! I mean, how is it that nobody's figured out that Superman is Clark Kent? He doesn't even wear a mask!"

"Oh please," Peyton said rolling her eyes. "Just because he doesn't wear a mask, it doesn't mean he can't keep his identity a secret. He's been saving the world forever, nobody would expect Clark Kent, Average Joe reporter from the Daily Planet, to be Superman. Would you recognize somebody famous if they were hiding in plain sight?"

"I think I would," Oliver said.

"I doubt it," Peyton said. "Sometimes people are staring you right in the face and you don't even see them."

Miley felt awkward. She had a strange feeling that Peyton was no longer talking about Superman. Could she know Miley's secret? That would explain why she seemed so familiar these past three weeks. She decided she needed to steer the subject away from secret identities. "Anyways," Peyton said, as though reading Miley's mind. "Let's change the subject."

"Fine with me," Miley said, smiling nervously. Peyton gave her an odd look. "So what did you guys do this weekend?"

"Yesterday we went surfing," Oliver said.

"Together?" Miley said, raising an eyebrow, trying to conceal her excitement.

"Yeah," Peyton said. "And Saturday I went to my grandmother's. In Beverly Hills. So it's pretty far. Uh...what did you two do?"

Before Lilly or Miley could answer, the bell rang and Ms Kunkle gave the class a cold look, which meant _'sit down now'_. And sit down they did. "Alright, class," Ms Kunkle said sternly. "Today I will be giving you time to work on your projects, since we are lucky enough to have a two hour class on this fine Monday morning. You only have a week and a half left until you must hand them in. I will remind you all one last time that any project not handed in before the third period bell rings next Thursday, will lose ten percent _per hour._"

The class exchanged troubled looks. "Now," Ms Kunkle continued. "I will be allowing certain groups to go to the library or to the computer lab. Oaken, Carter, Lewis, Turner, to the library. Stewart, Truscott, Adesen, Dewitt, computer lab. We will switch in thirty minutes. Go!"

Lilly and Miley picked up their books and walked towards the door. "Great," Lilly whispered disappointingly. "We're stuck with Amber and Ashley for a whole half an hour. Or a half whole an hour...or..."

"It doesn't matter!" Miley said as they headed towards the computer lab. "This means that Oliver and Peyton are going to be alone!"

Lilly rolled her eyes. "You're still not over that, are you?" she said. "Oliver doesn't like her. He likes Meghan Hollaway, remember?"

"He doesn't stand a chance with her," Miley said. "Her mother would never allow it. You remember her, right? But Peyton and Oliver makes sense. Look!" She pointed over to where Peyton and Oliver were walking towards the library. They looked back and saw the girls. They quickly waved at the pair.

Oliver and Peyton waved back. "Are they always so...?" Peyton asked Oliver.

"Weird?" Oliver said, smiling. "Yeah, pretty much. You'll learn to get used to it." They entered the library and got a seat.

"I had lots of fun yesterday," Peyton said playfully. "I've never been surfing before."

"Really?" Oliver said, surprised. "Coulda fooled me. You're a natural."

"Thanks," Peyton, blushing. "Maybe we could go again next weekend. And I found this really cute little dinner near the boardwalk, if you wanted to try it with me..."

"Peyton," Oliver said seriously. "You know I like you, right?"

"Yes," Peyton, her face suddenly lighting up.

"But not _like _like, right?" Oliver said. The radiance vanished from Peyton's face.

"Oh," she said. "Of course. I knew that. It's just..." She looked away.

"You're really cool to hang out with," Oliver said. "But I sorta...like someone else."

"Oh," Peyton said. "I understand."

"But while you're still in Malibu, we can still hang out, right?" Oliver said. "And you'll call me when you're back in New York?"

"Of course," Peyton said, smiling. "You're probably the first friend I've had in a while."

"Let's keep it that way, okay?" Oliver said.

"Yeah," Peyton said, nodding. "I'd like that."

* * *

"I'm surprised you came tonight, Lilly," Oliver said. The two were backstage, incognito, where Hannah was performing on _The Music Hour with Jamie Anders. _

"Why is that?" Lilly asked. She was wearing a blue wig and a red dress with white polka dots.

"Because Meghan is coming later," Oliver replied. "And you hate her."

"I don't hate her," Lola scoffed.

"Then why is it that every time Hannah wants you to hang with her, you always have some lame excuse to get out of it?" Oliver asked. "Like hanging out with _Jackson_?"

"Jackson's my friend too," Lilly said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Since when?" Oliver said.

"Since...," Lilly said awkwardly. "Like..."

"Exactly," Oliver said triumphantly. "I'm going to go see if Meghan is here yet. Later."

"Well," Lola said to Oliver as he walked away. "At least I don't look like someone stuck their armpit hair on my chin! Yeah! That's right!" Oliver was already gone, so he did not hear that comment. Unfortunately, several people did, who all turned to her and gave her a dirty look. A young girl, a boy and very short girl came up to her.

"Umm," the taller girl said, her voice laced with displeasure. "Who let _you _in here?"

"I'm Hannah Montana's friend," Lola said, embarrassed.

"Sure," the girl said. "Like Hannah Montana would ever be friends with a spaztic loser like you."

"Yah," the short girl said, looking Lola up and down in disgust. "Where did you get that outfit? The Hideous Superstore?"

Lilly's cheeks flushed red. She tried to think of something clever to say. But before she had time to make even a bigger fool of herself, someone came out of nowhere and gave her a big hug. It was Meghan Hollaway.

"Lola!" Meghan said. "There you are! I've been looking for you everywhere! I needed to thank you again for getting me this gorgeous dress! It's so great that you're so tight with Stella Fabioni. This girl is always saving me." She looked at the evil threesome, who's jaws had dropped on disbelief.

"Meghan...you...you know her?" the boy said, shocked.

"Of course, silly!" Meghan said. "She's Lola Luftnagle, Hannah Montana's BFF!"

"I thought you were Hannah's BFF?" the short girl asked.

"Trust me, I don't hold a candle to this awesome girl," Meghan said, smiling, putting her arm around Lily. "Like the other day, we were at this party, and Justin Timberlake comes up to me and says he's a big fan of my music. I totally freeze. But before I look too much of a baboon, Lola sweeps in, cool as ice, and saves the day! Well, it's been great seeing you guys, but Lola and I have got somewhere a little more important to be. Ciao!" Meghan grabbed Lilly's arm and pulled her towards the far end of the room.

"Thank you so much," Lilly said, still shocked about what had just occurred.

"It's no problem," Meghan said modestly. "Those guys are major jerks. The guy, he's Jacob Riley. His father's Malcolm Riley, the head of BeeDee Records, so he thinks he knows everything about music. And the really small one, that's Margo Simmons. Her dad is a celebrity real estate agent, and her mom's the heiress to a pharmaceutical company. She thinks she's the bomb cuz her grand-daddy bought her a pink Ferrari for her Sweet 16 last year. And the other girl, well, don't get me started with her. Her name is Stephany Armont. Her mom is Melanie Armont, the big time movie producer. She's Mikayla's BFF, so you can only imagine what kind of evil little witch she must be to be friends with that psycho."

"Wow," Lilly said. "I thought they'd be..."

"My friends?" Meghan replied. "No. My mom keeps trying to make it that way, but I just don't like them. They think they're better than everybody else because where they came from and how much money they have. I know you probably think I'd fit right in, with my mom being an ex-Broadway star and all that..."

"I don't think you're like them," Lola quickly added.

"Then why don't you like me?" Meghan said. "I usually don't really care when people don't like me, but you're Hannah's best friend. And if you don't like me, she might wonder why and see whatever it is that you don't like..."

"And you think Hannah wouldn't want to be friends with you just because of me?" Lilly asked. "That would never happen!"

"Do you really believe that?" Meghan asked doubtfully.

"Of course," Lilly said. "And I don't hate you. I've been acting this way 'cause I've sorta been...jealous that Hannah's been spending so much time with you."

"What?" Meghan said, shocked. "I've been so jealous of you because Hannah's always talking about you!"

"So I guess all of this craziness was for nothing," Lola said.

"Yeah," Meghan said, nodding. "You wanna go shopping tomorrow night? I found this great little shop that has these great refurbished vintage clothes!"

"Sounds like fun," Lola said.

"Hey! There you are!" Suddenly said Oliver's voice as he walked towards the girls, holding a slice of pizza in his hand. "You're with...Lola?"

"Hey Mike!" Meghan said. "We're just making plans for a shopping trip tomorrow."

"With Hannah?" Oliver asked.

"No," Lola replied. "Just the two of us."

"Uh huh," Oliver said. "Sounds like complicated girl stuff. But you have got to try this pizza! It's freaky-freaky-fantastic!"

Meghan suddenly took a bite of Oliver's pizza. "It's great," Meghan said, taking another bite.

"Jaws off, girly!" Oliver said, pulling his pizza away from Meghan. Meghan lunged at Oliver trying to wrestle the pizza out of his hands. The pair laughed.

"What is on that thing?" Lola asked, her nose turned up in disgust.

"Olives, sardines, pineapple, chocolate chips and sweet and sour mustard," Oliver said, looking at the slice with love in his eyes.

"I don't even want to know where you got that," Lola said, still disgusted.

"You know what it's missing though?" Meghan asked.

"Pickles," Oliver and Meghan replied together.

"Okay," Lola said, starting to walk away. "I'm going to find Hannah before this gets any grosser."


	6. Chapter 6

_OMG you guys make me sooo happy! All these reviews are making me ecstatic! (Okay, I know I've only got like 7 so far, but I still love it) Your feedback has really helped me make my story better. So keep the reviews coming, buddies! _

Chapter Six

"Oh my god, I'm so nervous," Peyton exclaimed, frantic.

"Uh, why?" Oliver asked. Peyton, Oliver, Miley and Lilly were all sitting in a Friday morning biology class. Ms Kunkle had said that today was going to be the day she handed back their projects.

"I don't want to fail my first Bio project!" Peyton said.

"First?" Miley said, confused.

"Not _first _first," Peyton quickly added. "I mean, my first Bio project here, at this school."

"Right," Lilly said. "I'm sure you'll be fine. You and Oliver worked really hard."

"Well," Oliver said, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. "Peyton kinda did most of the work."

"Oliver!" Miley said sternly. "That's not fair!"

"Hey!" Oliver said defensively. "I provided the snacks."

"And the books," Peyton said. "I sent him on library runs quite often. And Starbucks runs."

"It's still not fair," Miley said, crossing her arms.

"He did more work than he gives himself credit for," Peyton said. "Trust me. I just corrected most of his work. I just really wanna get a good grade. To show my mom."

"So maybe she'll let you stay?" Lilly asked.

"That's the hope," Peyton said. All of a sudden, the bell rang.

The students took their seats. "Now, class," Ms Kunkle said. "I have your projects here." She held up a large stack of papers. Miley could see that there was a lot of red marked on them. She swallowed hard. "You can come and get them now." She put them on the desk in front of her. The class all flew out of their seats to get their projects.

"Out of the way!" Miley said, elbowing her way through the crowd.

"Miley!" Lilly's voice yelled from somewhere in the crazed group. "I got it! Meet me back at our desks!"

Miley quickly turned around and pushed her way back to her desk. She found Lilly and yanked the paper out of her hands. In the corner of the sheet was a big red..."B-plus!!" Miley exclaimed. "Boo-yah!" She gave Lilly a high five.

"Oh my god! Oh my god!" came Peyton's frantic voice. Lilly and Miley turned to where Peyton was standing, white as a sheet and hands trembling.

"Is it that bad?" Miley asked nervously. Oliver came quickly came and peered over Peyton's shoulder at their sheet. "Oh...my..god...," Oliver said, his jaw dropping.

"A-plus!!" Peyton screamed.

"We got an A-plus!!" Oliver yelled, pumping a triumphant fist in the air. He grabbed Peyton and lifted her off her feet. "My first A-plus in biology!"

"We got an A-plus! We got an A-plus! We got an A-plus!" the pair began chanting, dancing around in a circle. "We got an A-plus! We got an A-plus! We got an A-plus! We got an A-plus!"

"Settle down, class," Ms Kunkle said. "Well, I must say, I'm very disappointed. Safe for a few exceptions," She looked first at Miley and Lilly, then at Peyton and Oliver, then finally at Rico, her favourite student. "your grades were quite abysmal. Those who received less than a C must do a 1000-word essay on what you did wrong. Individually. I expect to see your essay on my desk Monday morning." The class gave a collective sigh. The rest of class dragged on in silence and boredom. Miley felt a rush of relief when the bell rang, and rushed out to meet Lilly, Oliver and Peyton outside.

"Wow, Ms Kunkle was really crabby today," Lilly said.

"Oh, yeah," Oliver said gloomily. "It was quite a change from her usually sunny and radiant behaviour."

"At least we don't have to do the essay, right guys?" Miley said optimistically. "We have all weekend to just relax!"

"That sure is a relief," Peyton said happily. "I had know idea this was all going to so hard. Well, I guess we're off to Spanish, right Miley?"

"Me and Oliver have Social Studies," Lilly said, disappointed. "See you guys later."

"Bye!" Miley said to her two best friends as they walked up the stairs.

Peyton's phone suddenly rang. "Oh," Peyton said, looking at the display screen on her purple phone. "It's my dad. I better take this. I'll meet you in Spanish, okay?"

"Sure," Miley said, as Peyton scurried towards her locker talking on her phone. Miley walked towards Spanish class alone. She was beginning to realise that Peyton had already been in Malibu a month, which meant she would be leaving very soon. Miley really liked Peyton, and she knew that Oliver and Lilly did too. She was such a nice person to be around. Miley still felt a strange sensation of familiarity whenever she was around Peyton. Could she know her from somewhere else?

"Look, Dad," suddenly came Peyton's voice. Miley quickly turned around and saw Peyton huddled in a corner, her phone pressed against her ear. Miley hid behind a row of lockers, out of Peyton's line of vision. "If this is getting too hard, I'll stop. You can't keep making up excuses for Mom much longer. I hear you two yelling on the phone every night. I know, I know...I do love this place. It feels great. But I can't keep lying to everyone. I've got to tell everyone the truth...I know...It's best this way. I'm sure they'll understand...yeah...I hope they don't. Please just trust me, okay? I gotta go...I'm going to be late for Spanish. Bye." She snapped her phone shut and walked quickly towards Spanish class. Miley, confused, followed suit.

* * *

"Hey Jackson!" Lilly said casually, taking a seat at the counter at Rico's.

"Hey Lilly," Jackson replied, whipping the counter. "What can I get you?"

"Oh, nothing," Lilly said. "I'm just waiting for Miley. Peyton texted us before and asked her to meet her down by the cove."

"So I heard you and Miley made up," Jackson said.

"Well," Lilly said doubtfully. "I guess."

"You don't sound so sure," Jackson said, leaning in towards her.

"Well...," Lilly said. "I've sort of been spending a lot of time with Meghan."

"To get back at Miley?" Jackson asked. "I thought that was my job. It's nice to know I've been replaced." He turned around and made this horrible fake crying noise.

"Ha ha ha," Lilly said sarcastically. Jackson turned back around and laughed. "But seriously, why are you using the girl that you used to be jealous of to make Miley jealous?"

"Meghan really cool to hang out with," Lilly said defensively. "I'm not really using her. It's just...Hannah has all these famous friends. You know, all rich and glamorous and stuff. I'm not really any of those things."

"Yes you are," Jackson said. "Sure, you don't have your own limo or a triple-platinum album or anything, but you're a really great person to be around."

"...Thanks," Lilly said, blushing scarlet. "But it can't hurt if Miley gets to see what it feels like to be me for once, right?"

"I'm afraid i can't really answer that one for you," Jackson. "Part of my wisdom is letting others discover what they want through their own decisions, ergo, their own failures or triumphs."

"Wow," Lilly said, surprised.

"I've been eating a lot of fortune cookies lately," Jackson said. Lilly laughed. "Hey Lilly?"

"Yeah?" Lilly replied.

"We're still friends, right?" Jackson asked nervously.

"Yeah," Lilly said.

"So we can still hang out and stuff, right?" Jackson asked.

"Of course," Lilly said, nodding.

"You wanna go surfing tomorrow, then?" Jackson said.

"Sounds like fun," Lilly said, nodding again.

"So, it's a date," Jackson said. Lilly blushed. "I mean, not a real...real date," Jackson quickly added, blushing too. "It's j--just a fig--figure, of speech."

"There you are, Lilly," Miley said, coming down the beach.

"Well I guess I'll be going then," Lilly said nervously, quickly getting up.

"Yeah," Jackson said, still blushing. "I gotta work. Bye!"

"Bye!" Lilly said, quickly walking away.

"What was that about?" Miley asked Lilly as they walked down to where Peyton had asked they meet.

"N--Nothing," Lilly said. "So what do you think Peyton wants to tell us?"

"I don't know," Miley said, her thoughts still on the conversation she overheard that morning. The girls walked down the beach to the farthest cove, and saw Peyton and Oliver already sitting on the sand.

"Okay, they're hear now," Oliver said. "Now can you tell me what's going on?"

"Yeah, Peyton, what's up?" Lilly asked.

"You guys better sit down," Peyton said. "We're alone, right?"

"Yeah," Miley said, sitting down. "This is a pretty remote place on the beach."

"Okay then," Peyton said, taking a deep breath. "Here it goes. I'm...I'm not going to be in school anymore."

"You're going back to New York?" Lilly said. "Already?"

"Um," Peyton said. "Not exactly."

"What do you mean?" Oliver said, confused.

"I'm not actually from New York," Peyton said. "I'm from Beverly Hills."

"Then why did you tell us that you were from New York?" Miley asked.

"I've never been to a real school," Peyton said. "My mom always had me home-schooled. I just wanted to be able to go to school and be like everybody else. But now, my mom and dad are arguing even more, ever since my dad let me go to school. I thought the arguing would stop after the divorce, but my dad keeps having to make up excuses to my mom and it's getting worse. I'm just so sick of lying to everyone. Especially you guys."

"What are you talking about, Peyton?" Oliver asked, puzzled.

"Please don't hate me," Peyton pleaded. "I just wanted to know what it's like to have real friends." She reached up and took off her glasses. Then she put one hand on her head and pulled off her orange hair. Long, dark locks of black and purple hair flowed onto her shoulders, and Peyton Carter was no longer. Sitting on the beach with Miley, Lilly and Oliver, was Meghan Hollaway.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

"Wait...what?" Lilly said, staring in disbelief. "Meghan...Hollaway?"

"Umm," Meghan said, staring at the sand.

"You have got to be kidding me," Oliver said, shaking his head.

"Please don't be mad," Meghan said pleadingly.

Miley could not believe what was happening. Meghan was Peyton? It was all so confusing. Meghan had been Hannah, Lola and Mike's friend, and Peyton had been Miley, Lilly and Oliver's friend. And now it was all the same thing?

"We're not mad," Miley said, putting her hand on Meghan's shoulder. Lilly and Oliver nodded in agreement. How could Miley be mad? Meghan done exactly what she had done. Except Meghan's fake identity was the normal girl, where as Miley's was the opposite.

"I...," Meghan said. "My whole life, my mom has done everything she could so I could live out my dreams. Like I said, I've never been to a real school. I've always done everything my mom told me. I went to the parties she told me to go to, I recorded the songs she told me to record, I even hung out the people she told me to hang out with. But I decided I wanted to be able to make my own decisions for once. I talked to my dad and he told me he'd cover for me. But my mom's been getting suspicious lately, and they've been fighting about it a lot."

"So you did all this just because you wanted friends?" Oliver asked.

"Yeah," Meghan said nervously. "I thought people would judge me on who I really was and not by the fact that I'm famous. That's dumb, heh?"

"No," Lilly said. "It's totally cool."

"But what about Hannah Montana?" Oliver asked. Lilly and Miley gave him a warning glare. "Isn't she your friend?"

"Yeah," Meghan said, nodding. "She's the only person my mom's set me up with who actually turned out to be a real friend. Plus, I've been hanging out with some of her friends, and they're really cool too."

"Really...," Oliver said, raising his eyebrow in interest. He placed his hand on his chin. "Do tell us more about these other friends...what do you think about them? Anything interesting about them? Perhaps one of them is ruggedly handsome and devilishly charming?" Miley and Lilly both nudged him viciously in the ribs. He winced in pain.

"We totally understand why you did what you did," Lilly said.

"More than you know," Miley said, agreeing with Lilly.

"I'm so glad that you guys are so cool about all this," Meghan said, smiling. "I've actually got to go get ready for this photo shoot, but you guys want to hang out later?"

"Of course," Lilly said.

"I'll call you guys when I'm done," Meghan said, getting up. She put the orange wig back on. "To avoid the mobs." She smiled, waved, and walked away.

"Wow," Oliver said, still shell-shocked. "That was a plot twist I didn't see coming."

"Um," Lilly said. "That photo shoot she was talking about? Isn't that the one she and Hannah have got to do for _Teen Scene Magazine_?"

"Yup," Miley said, getting up. "We'd better go!"

--

"So the whole time, Peyton was actually Meghan Hollaway?" Jackson said. Lily was waiting on Miley to leave for the photo shoot. She and Jackson were in the Stewarts' living room, and Lily had been telling Jackson all about their crazy afternoon.

"Yup," Lily said, nodding, her pink hair bobbing.

"Wow," Jackson said. "That's pretty...wow."

"That's what we said," Lily said.

"It's kinda funny though, isn't it?" Jackson said, smiling.

"How's that?" Lily asked.

"You used to hate Meghan," Jackson explained. "And you thought Peyton was so cool. But now it turns out they're one in the same."

"That is kinda ironic," Lily agreed. "You know what else I just realised that's kinda funny?"

"What's that?" Jackson asked.

"Oliver likes Meghan, right?" Lily said. "But Meghan doesn't like Mike Stanley. But Peyton likes Oliver. And Oliver doesn't like Peyton."

"So in the end," Jackson said. "Oliver likes Meghan and Meghan likes Oliver. But they just don't know it. Miley'll get a kick out of that one."

"I'll get a kick out of what?" Miley said, walking into the living room in her best Hannah getup.

"Nothing," Jackson said. "I guess you girls are going now."

"Yes we are," Hannah said. "We gotta go get Oliver."

"We're still on for tomorrow, right Lil?" Jackson asked.

"Lil?" Miley said, raising an eyebrow at Lily.

"Always, Jay," Lily replied. "See ya at noon?"

"Jay?" Miley said.

" 'Course," Jackson said. "Bye!"

"Later!" Lily said, waving at Jackson as Miley pulled her out of the house and into the limo.

"What was that all about?" Hannah asked as the limo pulled away.

"What was what all about?" Lily said, looking out the window and waving at Jackson, who was standing on the Stewarts' front porch.

"You know, all that 'right Lil' and 'always, Jay'," Hannah said in a mocking tone.

"It's nothing," Lola replied, waving it off.

"It doesn't look like nothing to me," Hannah said seriously. "You don't...like him, do you?"

"Of course not," Lola said, blushing.

"Good," Miley said with a sigh of relief. "'Cause, I mean, it's _Jackson_. You've got better taste than that, right?"

"What, now I'm not allowed to have new friends?" Lola snapped.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hannah asked angrily.

"It's okay for you to have new friends, but I can't?" Lola replied.

"What are you talking about?" Hannah yelled.

"Meghan!" Lola screamed.

"I thought you were fine with her!" Miley yelled back.

"Oh, of course," Lola said, glaring at Hannah. "If Hannah Montana has a new friend, we all have to love her, but if plain old Lily has a new friend, she has to kick him to the curb if Hannah Montana doesn't approve!"

"Oh, please," Hannah said loudly, rolling her eyes. "You were only hanging out with Jackson because you were trying to make me jealous!"

"Well now he's my friend!" Lola yelled. "And just like with Meghan for me, you're gonna have to deal with it!"

"What if I don't want to deal with it?" Miley said, crossing her arms.

Before Lola could answer, the limo pulled to a stop. The door swung open and Oliver, dressed as Mike Stanley III, got in and sat down across from Lola and Hannah.

"What's up, girlies?" he asked casually.

"Nothing!" Lola and Hannah yelled, turning their backs to each other.

* * *

**Alrighty then, there you have chapter seven! I decided that I had resolved the Meghan/Hannah/Lily issue to quickly, so be prepared for more drama! Stay tuned and don't forget to REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!**


	8. Chapter 8

_**Heyy everyone! I just thought I'd take the time and thank you all for all the reviews! Your opinion really matters to me (right, angelrock? ), so keep 'em coming!**_

Chapter Eight

"Hey Lil!" Jackson called out to Lily as she walked down the beach, clutching her surf board.

"Hey!" she replied enthusiastically, waving at him. "You ready to catch some waves?"

"Absolutely!" Jackson replied. They walked towards the far end of the beach, where the waves were the less crowded, and, in their opinion, the best. "So what's up with Miley?"

"What do you mean?" Lily asked, looking out at the water, as they kept walking.

"She seemed a bit weird this morning," Jackson replied. "A lot of things were slammed. Including my head into the fridge."

"Oh," Lily said. "Well...I don't know what's wrong with her."

"Oh, come on," Jackson said, smiling. "Do you really expect me to believe that?"

"Yes?" Lily said unconvincingly.

"Did you two have a fight?" Jackson said seriously.

"Maybe," Lilly said, stopping in her tracks, and looking down at her feet.

"What about?" Jackson asked, stopping beside her.

"Nothing," Lilly lied. "It was just a stupid girl fight."

"Was it about Meghan again?" Jackson asked.

"No," Lilly said, looking away.

"Then what was it about?" Jackson asked.

"I...," Lilly said. "I don't want...it's nothing. Really."

"Hey," Jackson said, putting his hand on Lilly's arm. "You can trust me."

Lilly stared at his hand on hers. When Jackson noticed this, he quickly pulled away. They both blushed. "It was about you," Lilly said, after minutes of silence.

"What?" Jackson asked.

"Miley's mad that we've been hanging out," Lilly said. "And we had a huge fight about it last night."

"Wow," Jackson. "I'm really sorry."

"It's not your fault," Lilly said.

"Isn't it?" Jackson said.

"It's not your fault that you don't get along with your sister," Lilly said. "She's just jealous or whatever. She'll get over it."

"I hope so," Jackson replied.

--

"Hey Meghan!" Hannah called out. Miley and Oliver were at a _Teen Scene Magazine _party, which was being thrown in honour of Hannah and Meghan's cover issue.

"Hey guys!" Meghan said, turning towards Miley and Oliver. She was wearing a dark blue cocktail dress and silver pumps.

"Wow," Oliver said, eyes popping out of his head, as Meghan walked up to them. "You...wow...look...wow."

"Thanks," Meghan said, smiling. "I think."

"I can't believe this whole party is for us!" Hannah exclaimed.

"I know!" Meghan replied. She looked around. "Hey, where's Lola?"

"Oh," Hannah said, crossing her arms over her chest. "She...wasn't feeling very good so she stayed home."

"That's too bad," Meghan said, disappointed.

"Ah! There you are honey!" Suddenly came the voice of Madeleine Birwith, Meghan's mother.

"Hi Mom," Meghan said.

"Hi, Ms--Madeleine," Hannah said, smiling awkwardly.

"Hello, darling!" Madeleine replied. She looked over at Oliver, her expression reading that of unimpression. "Hello there, Matt."

"It's Mike," Oliver said.

"Sure, dear," Madeleine said, waving him off. "Oh by the way, Meghan, I got you an appointement with my hair stylist tomorrow at nine-fifteen."

"Why?" Meghan asked. "I got a haircut three weeks ago."

"We're getting that purple mess taken out," Madeleine replied.

"What?" Meghan said loudly. "No!"

"Oh honey," Madeleine said. "We've got to mature your look!"

"I'm fifteen!" Meghan snapped. "How much older do I need to look?"

"How about we discuss this when there isn't a photographer from every major tabloid here, shall we?" Madeleine whispered to Meghan. "Bye, Hannah! Bye...Mark." Then she gracefully walked away.

"Oh my god," Meghan said, putting her hands to her face. "She is so..."

"Tall?" Oliver suggested.

"Let's say that," Meghan said, lauging slightly.

"Miss Hollaway? Miss Montana?" Alicia Widmore, _Teen Scene Magazine_'s fashion editor, said. "There's some people here who would like to say hello." She moved over and gestured to the three boys standing there.

"Hello ladies," Kevin Jonas said.

"Oh...my...god...," Meghan said, her jaw dropping. "It's the freaking Jonas Brothers!"

"Hey guys," Hannah said casually. "How have you been?"

"Not bad," Joe replied.

"Pretty good," Kevin also replied. Nick just stood there, staring at Hannah. Joe smacked him in the back of the head.

"Quite great," Nick quickly said, still staring at Hannah.

"Guys," Hannah said. "This is my friend, Meghan Hollaway."

"Nice to meet you," Kevin said, shaking her hand. Nick also shook her hand, and Joe last.

"It's such an pleasure to meet you all," Meghan said to Joe, still shaking his hand.

"The pleasure's all mine," Joe said, smiling.

"Well," Oliver said loudly. "As fun as this has been...I think there's some reporters over there who want to talk to you boys. Maybe you should go see them, eh, Joe?"

"Right," Joe said, finally letting go of Meghan's hand. "See you guys around." Joe winked at Meghan as he and the brothers walked away.

"That was so cool!" Meghan said. "I just met the Jonas Brothers!"

"I don't get what's so special about them," Oliver said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I'm gonna go say hi to my dad," Meghan said. "See you guys in a little bit." She walked away. Hannah glared at Oliver.

"What?" Oliver asked.

"Jealous much?" Hannah said.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

"This is your room?" Oliver said, his jaw dropping at the site of Meghan's monstrous room.

"Yup," Meghan replied. "I know, it's really big. My mom doesn't believe in modesty."

Her room was roughly the size of Miley's living room and kitchen, combined. Her walls were painted purple and lime green. Her bed had a huge round frame. There was also a full stage, equipped with a microphone, guitar and amp, and a drum kit.

"Can we see your closet?" Miley asked, excited.

"Of course!" Meghan said, walking over to two huge purple doors at the far end of the room.

"Why do we want to see her closet?" Oliver asked, puzzled.

"Um," Miley said, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "To see her shoes!"

"Why would we care about her shoes?" Oliver asked.

The girls stopped in their tracks and turned to Oliver, giving him a look of utter shock and disgust. "Right, girls, shoes," Oliver said quickly, fearing what the girls might do next. "Gotchya."

Meghan pulled open the doors, revealing a very large room, covered with wall-to-wall shelves, all filled with shoes and clothing. It was about the same size as Miley's Hannah Closet. The only difference, though, was a large refrigerator and microwave in the corner, which Oliver noticed right away, and began stuffing his face.

"When's Lily coming?" Meghan asked Miley.

"Um," Miley said, looking down at her feet. "I don't know if she is."

"Why not?" Meghan asked, disappointed.

"Beshause Bibley am Fifly ad a blite," Oliver replied, his mouth full of chicken pot pie.

"What?" Meghan asked.

"Because Miley and Lily had a fight," Oliver said, swallowing his food.

"What about?" Meghan asked Miley.

"Uh," Miley said awkwardly.

"Um," Oliver said, shoving some patato salad in his mouth.

"It's nothing," Miley said. "It's kinda...complicated."

"Oh," Meghan replied. "Something to do with school, or something?"

"Yeah," Miley said, nodding.

"Well," Meghan said, smiling warmly. "I really hope you can work it out. Hannah had a problem with her friend Lola, but they managed to work it out."

"Wow," Miley said, looking away. "That's really great."

"Hey," Oliver said, quickly changing the subject. "You got any more of this potato salad?"

"Yeah," Meghan said, getting up. "In the fridge in the garage. I'll go get some." She walked out of the closet.

"Wow," Miley said to Oliver. "It's really weird being friends with her twice, eh?"

"Well," Oliver said. "Then maybe you should tell her your secret."

"What?!" Miley said. "That's crazy!"

"She told you the truth," Oliver said. "Why can't you do the same?"

"Well...I...," Miley replied, unable to find a good argument. "I'm just not, okay?"

"Okay," Oliver said, raising his hands in defeat. "It was just a suggestion."

* * *

"So why didn't you go with Miley and Oliver to Meghan's house?" Jackson asked Lily, who was sitting at Rico's counter, as he filled the ice machine.

"I didn't feel like it," Lily said. "I'd rather just be here and..."

"Watch me fill the ice machine?" Jackson said jokingly.

Lily laughed. "I don't really feel like talking to Miley right now," Lily said seriously.

"Is she still mad about me and you?" Jackson asked.

"Yeah," Lily said. "And you know what she said?"

"What?" Jackson asked.

"She thought I _like _liked you," Lily said.

"That's crazy," Jackson said, forcing a very fake laugh.

"Yeah," Lily said, looking at her feet. "So...you wanna hang out after your done work?"

"Sure," Jackson said. "After all, you did blow of spending a day with a international superstar and your two best friends to watch me fill up the ice machine."

Lily laughed. "You know," Lily said, looking Jackson in the eyes. "You're really funny."

"Thanks," Jackson said. He turned around and began to gather up his things.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked.

"I'm leaving so we can go hang out on the beach," Jackson said, getting out from behind the counter.

"I thought your shift doesn't end for another twenty-five minutes," Lily said.

"It does," Jackson said. "But I'm punching out early."

"Won't Rico fire you if you do?" Lily said, concerned.

"He won't," Jackson assured her. "He knows I'm the only person crazy enough to work for him. So come on!"

They walked down to the beach and spent the rest of the afternoon running and playing in the beautiful California sun. Lily completely forgot about her problems with Miley, but hanging out with Jackson always seemed to have that effect on her. She suddenly thought that he was much cuter than her ex-boyfriend. She quickly shook that thought her mind. Miley wasn't right. Lily didn't like Jackson like _that._ Right?

Suddenly, Jackson's phone rang, pulling Lily out of her thoughts. "Hello?" Jackson said.

"It's Miley," Miley said.

"Who is it?" Lily asked.

"Uh," Jackson replied. "Hold on a sec." He walked a couple feet away from Lily.

"Is that Lily there?" Miley asked, angry.

"Yeah," Jackson replied. "What's it to you?"

"Why can't you hang out with your own friends?" Miley snapped.

"She is my friend," Jackson said.

"Oh please," Miley said. "She only hung out with you because she was jealous of my hanging out with Meghan."

"Then why is she still hanging out with me?" Jackson snapped back.

"Cause she's still jealous!" Miley yelled. "You really think she'd hang out with you if she wasn't?"

"Yeah," Jackson said. "She likes me!"

"Don't be delusional," Miley said. "It's your fault that me and her are fighting. If you didn't hang out with her anymore, we'd all be so much happier!"

"You don't know what you're talking about," Jackson said, hurt.

"Whatever," Miley said. "Just tell Dad I'm having supper at Meghan's. Bye."

Jackson snapped his phone shut angrily. "What was that about?" Lily asked, approaching him.

"Nothing," Jackson lied. "I gotta go. Sorry."

"Oh, okay. You wanna go to the skate park tomorrow?" Lily asked.

"Um," Jackson said. "I can't sorry."

"Ok," Lily replied. "How about Monday after school?"

"Um," Jackson replied. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?" Lily asked, confused.

"I don't think we should hang out anymore," Jackson said bluntly. "I should hang out with my own friends. People my age."

"But I thought we were friends," Lily said, hurt.

"I...," Jackson said. "I gotta go. Bye." He walked away, leaving Lily standing there, her heart cold despite the warm midday sun.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

Lily had officially lost it. It had been six days since Jackson had told her that he didn't want to be her friend anymore, and she hadn't been the same since. Miley refused to talk to her, and Oliver and Meghan had become inseparable, so she felt like a third wheel with them. She wished she could go back to before Meghan had showed up and changed everything. _Do I really? _she thought. Before Meghan, there was no Jackson. Well, he had been there, but not as her friend, as Miley's annoying big brother. Before Meghan, Lily had Miley and Oliver and that was enough. But since her arrival, Meghan had made Lily's life so complicated. She had had two knew friends, but now, she felt like she was worse off than before. Why did Miley have to be so jealous? Why couldn't she just accept that Lily like being with Jackson? Jackson. Another problem. What had happened. What had changed his mind so suddenly? Lily had been so surprised by her immediate connection with him. What had started out as a simple plot of revenge had transformed into a full-blown friendship. Lily had found herself looking forward to school, hoping she could see Jackson between classes. Could Miley have been right? Could Lily have actual romantic feelings for Jackson? She had never felt more confused and unsure. But one thing was for certain: she wanted Miley and Jackson back, and fast.

"Lily?" her mom said, opening Lily's bedroom door. Lily quickly sat up on her bed. "There's someone here to see you." Lily's heart leaped. She hoped to see a head of long, curly brown hair, or of shaggy blond hair; her heart sank back again when she saw the tall black and purple-haired girl standing behind her mother.

"Hey you," Meghan said, as Lily's mom left the girls to themselves. "Wow, I was really hoping you'd look a little happier to see me."

"It's not you," Lily quickly replied. "I just thought maybe you were...never mind."

Meghan sat down on the edge of Lily's bed. "So when are you and Miley going to make up?"

Lily forced a laugh. "It's not that simple."

"Well then," Meghan said bluntly. "Simplify it for me."

After nearly a week of keeping it all inside, Lily couldn't hold it in any longer. She told Meghan everything (leaving out any Hannah-related details, of course); and Meghan was a surprisingly good listener for a girl who had never had any real friends before. She kept her eyes focused attentively on Lily, nodding occasionly. When Lily was finished, she waited a few moments before saying anything.

"Wow," Meghan finally said, eyes wide. "Ollie was right. You and Miley _are_ complicated."

"Ollie?" Lily said mockingly.

"Don't change the subject," Meghan said sternly. "Does Miley know you like him?"

"Like who?" Lily asked.

"Her brother," Meghan replied.

"I don't like him," Lily said defensively. "Well, I mean, I do like him. But I don't _like _like him."

"You know what?" Meghan said. "I'm not even going to get into the argument in which I try to make you see that your swimming in a big ol' bag of denial, and that you do in fact have a major crush on Miley's brother. Because that's not why I'm here. I'm here to help you figure out how to fix things with your best friend, which will automatically fix things with her brother, whom you apparently do not have a super huge crush on."

"How's that?" Lily asked.

"Don't you see, Lily?" Meghan asked. "He's only staying away from you because he thinks it'll bring you and Miley back together. I bet you anything she was the one who called him that day when you two were at the beach."

"Really?" Lily said. She couldn't believe it. Even when he hurt her feelings, Jackson was still making Lily happy.

"So what do I do now?" Lily asked.

"Don't worry," Meghan replied, smiling sympathetically. "I'll figure something out."

* * *

"Hey Ollie!" Meghan exclaimed. "Wait up!"

Oliver turned around and saw Meghan standing about twenty feet up the beach from where he and some of his guy friends were. Her hair was tucked in a Montreal Canadiens cap and she was wearing very large sunglasses. _To avoid the screaming fans,_ he thought.

"Hey Ollie!" Tommy, one of Oliver's friends, said in a mocking, high-pitched voice. "Oooohh, I love you soo much, Ollie!"

"Shut up," Oliver said, punching Tommy in the arm.

"Who is that girl anyway?" Chris, another of of Oliver's buds, asked. "You two are always together. How come you didn't tell us you scored yourself a little hottie?"

"She not my...," Oliver replied. "She's just...a friend."

"Well," Tommy said. "She is _fi-ne_."

"Even with those bid ol' sunglasses and that weird cap," Chris agreed, nodding. "What's with that? What kind of California girl likes hockey?"

"Dude, shut up," Oliver said, as Meghan approached the boys.

"Hey fellas," Meghan said, nodding at the guys.

There was a bunch of murmurs of yo's and sup's. "Yo," Chris said, louder than the others. "What's up with that cap?"

"Well," Meghan said matter-of-factly, placing her hands on her hips. "It so happens that the Montreal Canadiens is the greatest hockey team ever. If you'll excuse us, boys, I need to talk to Ollie."

She grabbed Oliver by the arm and pulled him towards a more private part of the beach. Behnid him. Oliver could see his friends making kissy faces at the pair. "What's up?" Oliver asked, ignoring them.

"We need to find a way to fix Miley and Lily's friendship," Meghan declared.

"We?" Oliver echoed. "Why do 'we' have to do something? Why can't they figure things out on their own?"

"Because we are their friends," Meghan replied. "And they are both to stubborn to do anything about it themselves. Therefore, it is our duty to intervene."

Oliver giggled. "What's so funny?" Meghan asked.

"You said 'doody'," Oliver replied, and giggled again.

Meghan rolled her eyes. "So are you going to help me or not?"

"Okay, okay," Oliver said. "I'll help. So what's the plan?"

"I have no idea," Meghan said, disappointed. "I've got to go to this charity thing that my dad's hosting tonight. I think I'll ask Hannah what she thinks. She's really knowledgable when it comes to this stuff."

"I bet she is," Oliver muttered.

"Do you wanna come?" Meghan asked. "I'd love it if you could meet her."

"Sure," Oliver said awkwardly.

"Great," Meghan said. "It's at my dad's loft. I'll pick you up at seven. Wear a suit!"

* * *

Miley walked into Mr Hollaway's loft alone. It was the first time in a long time that Hannah had gone to an event without the company of Lola Luftnagle or Mike Stanley III. Lily refused to speak to her and Oliver was here as himself, which made things even more complicated. Could Oliver be right? Should Miley tell Meghan her secret? Miley could then tell Meghan the whole story' she could tell her everything and she would be able to help her fix things with Lily. And then Lily wouldn't need yo hang out with Jackson. What was up with that anyway? What did Lily see in that immature, disgusting weirdo of a brother? And why couldn't Jackson just hang out with his own friends? Miley had noticed that he was hanging more with his real friends lately, and he never seemed to be seeing much of Lily. But he did seem a little more sulky. What was going on with everybody?

"Hey Hannah!" Meghan yelled. Hannah turned around and saw Meghan, wearing a strapless polka-dotted dress, and Oliver waring, surprisingly enough, a black suit. "Come here!"

Hannah walked over to them. "Hey Meg," she replied.

"I'd like you meet my friend," Meghan said. "Hannah, this is Oliver Oken. Oliver this is Hannah Montana."

"Nice to meet you," Hannah said awkwardly, putting out her hand. Oliver shook it violently.

"Wow," Oliver said, unintentionally loud. "You look different in person. 'Cause I've definitely never met you before. This is the first time we've met."

Hannah pulled her hand out if Oliver's death grip. "Of course," she said, giving Oliver an angry glare.

"You guys keep talking," Meghan said. "I've got to go say hi to my cousin. Be back in a minute!"

"Way to go, Captain Subtlety," Hannah said sarcastically once Meghan was out of earshot.

"Sorry," Oliver said. "You know I'm bad at lying. Especially to my friends."

"I know," Hannah replied. "It is weird lying to her like that."

"You know my solution to that," Oliver replied.

"Oh, sweet nibblets," Hannah said. "I can't tell her, okay? Now hush up, she's coming back!"

"So you two okay?" Meghan asked. "Getting along well?"

"Yup," Oliver replied.

"Like we've known each other for years," Hannah added.

"Good. Hey Hannah," Meghan said. "I've been meaning to ask you something. Some friends of ours are in the middle of this huge fight. I was wondering if you had any suggestions on how we can help."

"Well," Hannah said, looking at her feet. "Maybe you should let them work it out. If you let them be, I'm sure the whole thing will blow over."

"See," Meghan said. "The thing is, I don't think it will. They're in this whole mess just because one of them is jealous that the other is spending time with her brother."

"Maybe she isn't jealous," Hannah retorted. "Maybe she just thinks her brother should get his own stupid friends and should stop stealing hers!"

"Maybe," Meghan said, raising an eyebrow. "But I just don't get why one person can't be friends with two siblings. People can be so complicated for nothing, eh?"

Hannah pursed her lips together, remaining silent. "I couldn't agree more," Oliver said, looking at her.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

"So are we clear on the plan?" Meghan said for the tenth time.

"Yes, yes, yes," Oliver replied.

"So you guys are going to meet us at our spot at exactly fifteen hundred hours?" Meghan asked.

"Why can't you just say three o'clock?" Oliver asked.

"Because more stealth when I use military time," Meghan replied. "Now, make sure that after school, you follow the plan exactly as I said. This has to work perfectly."

"So what are you going to be doing all day while I'm at school?" Oliver asked casually. Before Meghan could answer, her phone made a beeping noise, indicating that she had received a text message. She flipped open her shiny purple cellphone. Reading the message, she laughed.

"What's so funny?" Oliver asked, trying to peek at the message over Meghan shoulder.

"It's nothing," Meghan said, closing her phone before Oliver could read the text. "It's just Joe."

"Joe?" Oliver asked. "Like my Uncle Joe?"

"Why yes, Ollie," Meghan replied sarcastically. "Your Uncle Joe and I have been secretly dating for the past two months. I only became your friend so I could get to him."

"Ha ha," Oliver said, sticking out his tongue. "But seriously, who's it from? Who's Joe?"

"Remember from the _Teen Scene Magazine_ party?" Meghan asked.

"Joe _Jonas_?" Oliver asked bitterly. "You've been texting him?"

"Yeah," Meghan said. "We're going to DisneyLand together today. Hannah was right. He _is _the cute, funny one."

"Well," Oliver said jealously, crossing his arms. "His music's not _that _great."

"Are you kidding?" Meghan replied, shocked. "The Jo Bros rock! I'm gonna try tosee if they'll record a song with me! Maybe even one of the songs I wrote!"

"You write songs?" Oliver said, eager to change the subject. "Did you write all the songs on your album?"

"No," Meghan replied. "I didn't write any of them."

"Why not?" Oliver asked.

"Because my mom thinks I'm not old enough to write my own songs," Meghan replied. "She says I don't have enough maturity to write songs that I should be singing. But Linda Sparks, the songwriter for my album, says my songs are great. It's too bad, I guess."

"Why don't you just tell your mom that you want to do things your way for you music?" Oliver asked.

"Have you met my mother?" Meghan said, forcing a smile.

"Meghan? Meghan, are you down there?" suddenly came Meghan's mother's voice from upstairs.

"Speak of the devil," Meghan muttered.

"There you are, darling," Madeleine said, bursting into Meghan's room. "Your father called while I was on the phone with John--Oh," she said, finaly noticing Oliver sitting next to Meghan. "What did I tell you about boys in your bedroom?"

"I don't know," Meghan spat.

"Don't take that tone with me," Madeleine warned sternly. "Shouldn't you be at school, young man?" She glared darkly at Oliver.

"Um," Oliver said, his voice shaking with fear. "I guess I should..." He stood up and walked towards the door. He nearly tripped over Meghan's desk as he avoided getting any closer to Madeleine.

"Goodbye, Otis," Madeleine said bitterly.

"Bye, _Oliver_," Meghan snapped, looking at her mother. Her eyes focused back to Oliver. "See you this afternoon, okay?"

Oliver nodded and quickly left the room.

"Odd boy, that one," Madeleine said. She looked Meghan up and down. "You're not wearing _that _on your date with Joe Jonas, are you?"

* * *

"So how was your day at school, Miles?" Meghan asked. It was now two fifty-five, and Meghan's plan was in full swing. The two girls were walking down to the spot where Oliver and Meghan usually hung out; the spot where the final phase of the plan would be executed. If all went well, Miley, Lily and Jackson would all be friends again before dinnertime.

"Not bad," Miley said. "I got an A on my algebra test."

"Cool," Meghan said. "How's old Mrs. Collins doing, anyway?"

"Still boring us out of our brains with variables," Miley said, smiling.

"I miss school," Meghan said, sighing.

"I don't," Miley said. They both laughed.

"So how's Lily doing?" Meghan asked.

"I don't know," Miley said. "I haven't talked to her in a while."

"Oh," Meghan said, pretending to be disappointed. "That's too bad."

"When was the last time you talked to her?" Miley asked.

"Monday," Meghan lied. She had in fact talked to Lily only a few hours ago, to insure she would be at the spot when the plan would go down.

"So how was _your _day?" Miley asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Not bad," Meghan replied. "I went to Disneyland with Joe Jonas."

"Wow," Miley replied, pretending to be star-struck. "So...are you two going out?"

"No, no," Meghan replied, waving her hands. "We're just friends. Plus, Nick was there too. He kept asking all these questions about Hannah. I think he's got a crush on her."

"That would be so cool!" Miley said excitingly.

Meghan gave her an odd look. "I mean," Miley quickly added. "That would be really cool for Hannah. They'd be really cute together."

"I totally agree," Meghan replied. She stopped walking. "Here we are!"

"Wow," Miley said. She looked around at the beautiful spot the two girls were now at. "This place is great!"

"Me and Ollie come here all the time," Meghan said.

"You two _have _been spending a lot of time together," Miley implied. "Is there anything you'd like to share about that?"

"Um," Meghan said, bitting her lip.

"Hey Meghan! Sorry I'm--" Lily said, coming up from behind the trees. "What's _she _doing here?"

Before Meghan could answer, Oliver and Jackson appeared, walking from the direction that Miley and Meghan had come from.

"Dude," Jackson said to Oliver. "I though Carmen Electra was sun-bathing!"

"What are you two up to?" Miley said angrily.

"We've tricked you here because you're all being so stupid!" Meghan said.

"You know, I wouldn't put in those exact words..." Oliver said nervously, noticing the angry expressions upon Lily, Miley and Jackson's faces.

"You guys really need to work out whatever problems you have," Meghan said calmly. "We're going to figure this all out. Together."

"I'm out of here," Miley said. Meghan blocked her path.

"No," Meghan said, looking down at Miley. Miley, noticing how significantly taller Meghan was than her, backed off. "Nobody's leaving until we fix this."

"What about dinner?" Oliver asked. "This could take awhile." His stomach growled.

"I thought of that," Meghan said. She opened her bag and pulled out a neatly wrapped meatball sub. She tossed it to Oliver.

"I love a girl who always has a meatball sub on her," Oliver said, then bit into his sandwich.

"Anyway," Meghan said. "Let's all sit down and figure this out."

Meghan and Oliver took a seat on the sand. Miley, Lily and Jackson reluctantly followed suit.

"Okay then," Meghan said. "Now, Miley, why do you have such a big problem with Lily being friends with your brother?"

"Because...," Miley said. "Because he's spending more time with her than me! And she's _my _best friend, not his!"

"Well, you didn't think that that was what Lily was thinking when you were hanging out with--" Jackson said. "With, that new friend of yours!"

"What new friend?" Meghan asked.

"Just this girl," Miley said nervously. "Named...Mathilda."

"Is that really how you felt, Lily?" Meghan asked softly.

"Why yes I did, Dr. Phil," Lily said sarcastically.

"Well, Miley," Meghan said. "I guess you could say you got a taste of your own medicine. It didn't feel good, did it?"

"No," Miley said, running her hands through the sand.

"But that doesn't mean that you all can't be friends," Oliver added, finishing off his sub.

"But it's Jackson!" Miley said. "He's so...gross!"

"Hey!" Jackson yelled. "I'm sitting right here!"

"Well," Meghan said. "Just because you don't see any admirable qualities in him, that doesn't mean that Lily doesn't. And Jackson wants to be friends with her, right?"

"Yeah," Jackson said. Lily smiled.

"And you want to be friends with Miley, right Lily?" Meghan asked.

"Of course," Lily said.

"So," Meghan said. "You're all going to have to compromise if you all want to stay friends. Miley, you're going to have to accept that Lily like being friends with Jackson, even if you don't like him. And Lily, you're going to have to accept that Miley's friends with this Mathilda girl. Okay?"

"Yeah," Lily said, smiling. "Mathilda actually a pretty cool person."

"The best," Oliver agreed.

"Okay then," Meghan said, getting up. "I've got to go to dinner with my dad soon. How about I swing by your house later, Miles? We can all hang out."

"Well," Miley said. "I've got this...thing, with my dad, but we won't be home too late."

"Great," Meghan replied, as the everybody else got up from the sandy ground. They all began to walk back up the beach together. "You know," Oliver said to Meghan. "If the whole international singing sensation thing doesn't work out, you should definitely consider becoming a psychologist."

Meghan blushed and smiled. "Maybe I will."

* * *

"Coming!" Jackson yelled at the door, when he heard the doorbell ring at eight o'clock that night.

"I'll get it," Lily said, smiling. Everything was finally working out. Lily and Miley were friends again, and so were Lily and Jackson. Thanks to Meghan, everybody was happy. Especially Jackson. He had never really noticed how much he had grown to like Lily in the past two months; not until last week. This week had been so miserable. He was glad to have Lily back as his friend. And maybe, just maybe, something more.

"Hey Meghan!" Lily said as she opened the door.

"Hey Lily!" Meghan replied. She looked over Lily's shoulder and waved at Jackson. "Hey Jackson!"

"Miley's not back yet," Jackson said, waving back. "But you can come in and wait for her. Oliver called ten minutes ago and said he was on his way over." He grabbed his jacket and his car keys.

"You guys heading out somewhere?" Meghan asked, taking a seat on the Stewarts' couch.

"Yeah," Lily said, putting on her purple jacket. "There's this really cool surfing movie playing, so we're going to see that."

"Oh, you mean, _Ocean Fever_?" Meghan asked. "With James Bodego?"

"Yeah," Jackson replied, nodding.

"I met him once," Meghan said. "He's totally gorgeous and all, but he's a real self-centered jerk."

"I hope you're not referring to me," Oliver said, walking into the Stewarts' house. "Though, I must say, I agree with the 'totally gorgeous' part."

"Ha ha," Meghan said sarcastically. Oliver made a funny face at her and sat down on the armchair next to her.

"Well," Jackson said. "We're off now, You two kids have a good night. Don't wait up!"

Oliver and Meghan waved at the pair as they disapeared into the crisp night. "They _sooo_ love each other," Meghan said, flopping into the couch.

"Totally," Oliver agreed. He got up and opened the fridge. "You want anything?" he asked.

"Are you sure you should be doing that?" Meghan asked, concerned.

"Of course," Oliver replied. "You should know by now that that is what friends do."

"Raid each other's fridge when the other is out with her dad?" Meghan said jokingly.

"No, friends don't hold back," Oliver said. "They don't need to be shy with each other."

"That's what I love about you guys," Meghan said, as Oliver returned the sofa, his arms full of food. He placed it all on the coffee table. "You guys always tell the truth, no matter what."

"Yeah," Oliver said, looking deep into her blue eyes.

"I'm so happy I met all of you," Meghan said, leaning in closer towards Oliver.

"Me too," he replied, also leaning in; now they were barely an inch apart.

"Yeah," Meghan replied, leaning in some more.

"Mm," Oliver said, leaning in. He was about to close the gap between their lips when the front door opened and Miley and her dad walked in. "That was quite a show tonight, darlin'," he said.

"The crowd was great," Miley replied, pulling off her blond wig.

"Oh my god," Meghan said, her jaw dropping. Miley quickly turned around, her jaw also dropping at the sight of Meghan. "Miley, _you're _Hannah Montana?!"

* * *

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	12. Author's Note: PLEASE READ!

**Heyy everybody! **

**I know you all want an update, but you're gonna have to work for it. I've decided that this story is over. But don't despair, Meghan, Lily, Jackson, Oliver and Miley's story continues in the sequel to 'Strange New Faces', entitled 'Open Your Eyes'! **

**I realized that the storyline has really changed since the beginning. It started out, as you all know, as a story about Lily being jealous about Miley's friendship with Meghan, and Miley trying to place where she knew the new girl at school, Peyton, from. Well, Lily's not jealous anymore and we all know that Peyton is Meghan, so the story's pretty much over. **

**'Open Your Eyes' will pick up where we left off, which is Meghan discovering Miley's secret. It will have all of your favourite couples: Lackson (which will be heating up soon), Niley (it'll be A LOT more present than in SNF), and Meghan/Oliver (it's gonna be awesome!). And there'll be a lot more of Madeleine, Meghan's crazy mom (she gets crazier!)! **

**So keep your eyes open for 'Open Your Eyes', coming to a Hannah Montana page near you!**

**Also, feel free to leave a review, indicating your thoughts, opinions and suggestions. **

**Love always,**

**Charlee B.**

**PS. I apologize for the really bad pun, as seen above. **


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